35 bowls, 35 reasons to watch

Friday

Dec 20, 2013 at 5:20 PM

Starting Saturday in Albuquerque, N.M., and ending Jan. 6 in Pasadena, Calif., 35 bowl games will be played.

You should watch all of them. Here’s why.

SATURDAY, DEC. 21 New Mexico Bowl Washington State (minus 41/2) vs. Colorado State Why watch? We haven’t seen Washington Mike Leach coach a postseason game since the 2009 Cotton Bowl, when he was at Texas Tech.

Pick: WASHINGTON STATE 31-24.

Las Vegas Bowl Fresno State (plus 61/2) vs. Southern California Why watch? Fresno State’s Derek Carr, who leads the nation in yards passing per game (405), against the toughest defense he has faced this season. USC is tied for 11th in the country in yards per pass allowed.

New Orleans Bowl Tulane (minus 21/2) vs. Louisiana-Lafayette Why watch? A Montana playing quarterback in a bowl game. Tulane’s Nick Montana has been nursing a sore shoulder, but he is expected to be good to go against the Ragin’ Cajuns.

TUESDAY, DEC. 24 Hawaii Bowl Oregon State (minus 3) vs. Boise State Why watch? Boise State’s first game without Chris Petersen as coach since 2005 and the Broncos are trying to avoid their first season with at least five losses since 1998.

Pick: OREGON STATE 35-21.

THURSDAY, DEC. 26 Little Caesars Pizza Bowl Bowling Green (minus 51/2) vs. Pittsburgh Why watch? Pitt is playing in a bowl and that game is not being played in Birmingham, Ala. This must be seen to be believed. Same goes for Panthers All-America DT Aaron Donald.

Pick: BOWLING GREEN 28-21.

Poinsettia Bowl Northern Illinois (minus 11/2) vs. Utah State Why watch? Jordan Lynch’s last college game comes against a Utah State defense that is seriously good.

PICK: UTAH STATE 31-28.

FRIDAY, DEC. 27 Military Bowl Marshall (minus 21/2) vs. Maryland Why watch? Marshall plays fast, has a good offense and a bad defense. The possibility of 49-48 game is always high when the Thundering Herd play, and the Terps can put up points when QB C.J. Brown is healthy.

PICK: MARYLAND 49-48.

Texas Bowl Minnesota (minus 41/2) vs. Syracuse Why watch: After all that excitement in the Military Bowl, you might need a nap. The Gophers rank 97th in the nation in yards per play. Syracuse is 102nd. Yep, that’ll do.

Pick: MINNESOTA 17-10.

Fight Hunger Bowl BYU (plus 3) vs. Washington Why watch? The last time we saw BYU LB Kyle Van Noy in a bowl game he scored two touchdowns, blocked a punt and had 31/2 tackles for loss. Who knows what he might do for a postseason encore in his last college game.

Russell Athletic Bowl Miami (plus 31/2) vs. Louisville Why watch? To see that Cardinals QB Teddy Bridgewater is most certainly ready for the NFL. But, hey, Teddy, if you want to give college another year we’re all for it.

Pick: LOUISVILLE 28-27.

Buffalo Wild Wings Bowl Kansas State (minus 31/2) vs. Michigan Why watch? Gronk is playing! Glenn Gronkowski II is Kansas State’s starting fullback and the brother of New England Patriots star tight end Rob, who is out for the season with a knee injury. Glenn has one rushing attempt for no yards, but has caught four passes for 148 yards (37 per catch) and three touchdowns.

Pick: MICHIGAN 28-23.

MONDAY, DEC. 30 Armed Forces Bowl Middle Tennessee (plus 61/2) vs. Navy Why watch? Navy QB Keenan Reynolds is a record-breaker. He tied an NCAA record with seven touchdowns in an overtime victory against San Jose State and set a record for a quarterback with 29 rushing TDs this season.

Pick: NAVY 37-35.

Music City Bowl Mississippi (minus 3) vs. Georgia Tech Why watch? Fan angst should be palpable. Both teams lost their final two regular-season games against FBS opponents, including overtime losses to in-state rivals. The loser will stumble into the offseason with a disappointing 7-6 record.

Pick: OLE MISS 31-21.

Alamo Bowl Oregon (minus 131/2) vs. Texas Why watch? Listening to speculation about who will be the new Longhorns coach never gets old.

Pick: OREGON 42-24.

Holiday Bowl At San Diego Arizona State (minus 14) vs. Texas Tech Why watch? To see the Sun Devils score 60. How do we know they will? Three of the past four times Todd Graham has coached in a bowl game his team has scored more than 60 points.

Liberty Bowl Rice (plus 7) vs. Mississippi State Why watch? If the New Year’s Eve party starts at 4 p.m. ET, you might not make it to midnight. Think of Owls-Bulldogs as a way to pace yourself.

Pick: MISSISSIPPI STATE 24-20.

Chick-fil-A Bowl Texas A&M (minus 121/2) vs. Duke Why watch? Yes, it might be more fun to watch Johnny Football ring in the New Year after the game, but what could be Johnny Manziel’s last college game is must-see TV, too.

Pick: TEXAS A&M 52-30.

WEDNESDAY, JAN. 1 Heart of Dallas Bowl UNLV (plus 61/2) vs. North Texas Why watch? It goes perfectly with the seven-layer dip that’s been sitting out all night that you’ll be having for “breakfast” at noon ET.

Pick: NORTH TEXAS 31-21.

Gator Bowl Nebraska (plus 9) vs. Georgia Why watch? Because you missed the Huskers and Bulldogs play last year in the Capital One Bowl.

Outback Bowl Iowa (plus 71/2) vs. LSU Why watch? The last time the Hawkeyes and Tigers played in a New Year’s Day bowl in Florida, Iowa won on a long TD pass on the last play of the game. There is precedent for madness.

Fiesta Bowl Why watch? The record for most points scored by a team in a bowl game is 70, a total the Bears reached four times this season.

Baylor (minus 161/2) vs. UCF Pick: BAYLOR 65-35.

THURSDAY, JAN. 2 Sugar Bowl Alabama (minus 15) vs. Oklahoma Why watch? The last time Alabama lost to Auburn, the Crimson Tide took it out on Michigan State in a bowl game. The Sooners could be headed toward a similar fate.

Sunday, Jan. 5 GoDaddy.com Bowl Arkansas State (plus 81/2) vs. Ball State Why watch? To find out who is coaching Arkansas State, which has had three straight one-and-done coaches.

Pick: BALL STATE 37-20.

MONDAY, JAN. 6 BCS National Championship Florida State (minus 81/2) vs. Auburn Why watch? Say goodbye to the BCS and see if Jameis Winston and the Seminoles can end the SEC’s national title streak at seven games.